Counting device



Dec. 30, 1952 E. L. ERICKSON 2,623,647

couNTING DEVICE Filed March 25. 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET l INVENTOR. 2HE/ LER/CKSN Dec. 30, 1952 E. L ERICKSON 2,623,647

couNTING DEVICE Filed March 25, 194s 2 SHEETS- SHEET 2 IN VEN TOR. ELNE? MIC/(SON Patented Dec. 30 1952 UNIT E D STAT ES iIsC 2,623,647'v COUNTING DEVICE Elmer L. Erickson, Brookings, S ..Dak.

Application March 25, 1948,n Seriali No. 17,011

(Cl. 21d-1);

5. Claims. 1

This invention relates to devices for counting, by' numerical' measurement; articles such asV seeds andthelike.

More particularly,v the device of the present invention is especially designedto count large seeds such as peas, beans andcorn kernels,` but it also is very satisfactory for counting out elements such as pills, ball bearings and the. like..

My invention preferably is embodied in the form` of a counting board comprising two or more apertured panels superposed upon each other and at least one lof which is slidable tov cause alignment of the groups of apertures.

It is the primaryv object oi the present invention to construct 4a. novel counting board designed to receive and retain a definite, predetermined number of articles to be counted, and operable with facility tov discharge the groups of articles either loosely into a receptacle or in a definite pattern onto a receiving surface.

Other important objects reside in the features Vand details of construction of the board such as a means for manually actuating the sliding panel to discharge position. and a means for automatically returning the panel to its initial receptive position.

A clear understanding of the invention may be had from a study of the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view, in partial section, of a preferredl embodiment of the present invention, the device being shown in its receptive position.

Fig. 2 represents a substantially complete vertical section taken along the line 2-2, Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view, in plan as seen along the plane of line 3 in Fig. 2, of the spouted corner of the receptacle.

Fig'. 4 represents a vertical section taken on the plane of line 4-4..Fl'g. 1. y

Fig. 5, in a fragmentary view similar to Fig. l, shows one of the panels moved toward the right to bring the groups of apertures into registry.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section taken along line 6 6, Fig. 5.

Fig. '7 is a side view of the spouted corner of the device, as seen looking upwardly into the lower end of Fig. 6.

With continued reference to the drawings, the base structure of the counting device comprises a panel 8, preferably rectangular and formed from a nat sheet of pressed iiber composition or the like. This panel is perforated with a multiplicity of holes I0. arranged in vertical and horizontal rows, the vertical rows necessarily being be seen. In the illustration there are. seven holes to each row, giving a total of forty-nine. Hence, for vconvex-lierreein counting (addition), an extra single Vorliset hole I'I-I is provided to make a total of nity- Mounted upon the panel A8 is a three-sided frame comprisingtop and bottom strips I2 and I3 anda 'lett hand side strip I4, in mitered joinder at two corners, these strips being secured to the panel by screws I5 which also serve to attach a catch pan in the form of a receptacle yet to be described. Attheiry inside bottom surfaces the top and bottom strips I2 and I3 vare `grooved to anord `two straight andl parallel channels I6, each preferably rectangular in cross section and each extending from the right hand side oi the device to the inner edgeof the strip I4, thus affording a slidew-ay for a second movable panelnow to be described.

The movable panel il, of rectangular shape is of such size and thickness that it slides readily into the channels I6 and rests upon the panel 8. In its extreme left hand position (Fig. 1)V it abuts the frame stripV I4. It has a multiplicity of holes I8, yarranged in rows as in the panel 8 and which, in this position, are out of alignment with rthe holes I0. There also is a -ii'ftieth hole 201, offset just to the left of the eicti'a hole I I of the panel 8. The two panels normally are maintained in the relative positions just described, as follows.

The outer (right hand) positions of the top and bottom of the panel I'I are incised at their lower edges so that they form, together with the frame strips i2 and I3 and the base panel 8, a pair of parallel sockets 2|. Each socket contains a coil spring 22, partially compressed as illustrated in Fig. 1, so that the two springs yieldingly urge the panel l1 in balanced lfashion into abutment with vthe frame strip I4. The reaction is caused by a pair of pins 23 (or screws er the like) correlated with the springs to 'abutthe free ends of the latter so that they (the springs) will press against the inner ends of the sockets 2| to urge the panel Il leftward.

For the purpose of forcing the slidable panel I i into discharging position there is provided a vertical (in practice, substantially horizontal) kicker bar 24, secured to the tcp of the panel I1 as by screws 25. This bar is so short as to allow space below it for one or more pairs of apertures 'I I, 2D; and it is set at the right hand edge of the szlidable panel I1 which, as shown in Fig. 1, is shorter from left to right than the stationary base panel 8 by a distance approximately equal to the diameter of the apertures. Thus, with properly designed and selected compression springs 22, the latter are fully compressed (Figs. 5 and 6) when the bar 24 and its supporting panel I'I are flush with the right hand edge of the base panel 8.

The operation of this device which should be fairly obvious, is as follows. A quantity of seeds or other articles, suitable to the size of the apertures Ill and I8, is thrown or dumped onto the upper panel I1, the entire device being in approximately horizontal position. Then, by tilting the board to roll excess seeds or other articles downwardly, or by brushing off those seeds or articles that have not deposited themselves in the upper holes I8 (and 20), no excess seeds or particles above the number fifty are retained by the panel I1. The excess, unless the articles are carefully Y laid into the fifty holes, can be tossed o readily to the right by way of the fiat space between the frame strip I3 and the lower end of the bar 24.

Thus, by iilling the fty holes I3 (more or less) with articles to be counted, while holding the board between the two hands a person can put his flngers against the panel 8 to holdvthe latter against movement and simultaneously use his thumb to force the bar 24 and its attached panel II to the right (from position of Fig. 1 to that of Figs. 5 and 6), so that all seeds or other counted articles will be discharged in predetermined number through the aligned groups of apertures I5,

I and the associated holes 2U, I I.

The above described counter is designed primarily for seed tests. Hence, without its catch pan about to be described, it may be utilized to deposit seeds in a definite pattern of cross rows upon any suitable sub-stratum such as soil, wet toweling -or the like, to afford proper spacing of seeds for germination tests. This device is particularly adaptable to such tests, since the seeds may be tossed upon the panel I'I at random to avoid a biased or prejudiced test such as might otherwise be obtained were the operator to select seeds from a pile and pla-ce them individually into the holes.

The lower holes in the 'base panel 3 preferably are very slightly larger than those in the slidable panel II, to ensure that any seeds yor other articles received by the latter without substantial clearance can readily drop downwardly when the panel is reciprocated. The materials utilize-d preferably are seasoned wood or compositions of Wood fiber, the chief requisite being that they do not warp or bend so yas to hinder free relative movement between the two panels.

As previously suggested, a catch pan may -be att-ached to the device to form a receptacle for the articles being counted. This receptacle, preferably formed in one piece from a blank of aluminum or Iother workable metal, comprises a pan proper, 21, having a flat bottom with side walls struck out and bent vertically upwardly therefrom. Three of the side walls are of sufficient depth to permit flanges 28, 30 and 3| to be bent at right anglesthereto and to be attached to three edges of the panel 8 by the same screws I5 which are utilized to secure the panel to the strips I2, I3 and I4.

yOne corner, preferably the lower left hand corner of the pan, is cut and bent to provide a discharge spout 33, this spout having a triangularly shaped tab 34 bent at an angle upwardly to guide the counted articles leftward in the illustrations as they are discharged through the spout. It should be apparent that, when the pan 2 is attached, Iafter discharging one or more groups of articles to be counted into the pan, the entire device is held upright and tilted to the left to discharge the entire contents of the pan through the spout 33 into another larger container, not shown.

Obviously, numerous changes in detail and general design may be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, as is customary, I wish to be limited only by a reasonably liberal interpretation of the appended claims, which follow. f

What is claimed is:

l. In combination, in a counting device, an apertured base panel, a rectangularly shaped framework attached to said panel and comprising tvv-o parallel sides interconnected by a third side t-o thus leave one end open, an apertured upper panel confined by and slidable between said parallel sides, a pair of compression springs of equal strength nested into the parallel sides and `reacting between said parallel sides and said upper panel to yieldingly urge the latter intc abutment with said third side, and means on said 'upper panel usable to force it in a direction away from -said third side, said means comprising a bar partially closing said lopen end from one of said parallel sides towards the other.

2. In the combination deiined in claim l, said lparallel sides of said framework being grooved to form guiding channels for two of the edges of said upper panel, said edges having relieved portions adjacent the open end of the framework and said springs being concealed within portions of said channels and tting into said relieved portions.

3. A counting device comprising a base panel having its top, bottom and left hand edges secured to a three-sided framework, a simple iiat and unframed upper panel slidable to right and left in direct contact with said base panel, said panels ybeing apertured with staggered sets of holes that can be brought into and out of registry, means resiliently urging said upper panel toward the left, said upper panel being shorter from right to left than -said base panel by a distance substantially equal to that between associated sets of staggered holes and having a memiber attached to its right hand edge for actuation by the thumb of an operator when some fingers of the same hand are held against the right hand edge of said base panel.

4. In a counting device of the class described, a three-sided framework and a pair of relatively slidable panels partially encompassed thereby so that one panel may move towards and from the open side of the framework, said panels having multiple sets of apertures arranged to be brought into and out of registry, a manipulating bar secured to one of saidpanels to partially close said open side of said framework, and at least one mated pair .of additional apertures provided in said panels' approximately in line with said bar to afford any desired count upon each relative reciprocation of the panels.

5. In a device for handling articles of substantially uniform size and of the class described, a generally rectangular framework having three closed sides and an open side; a pair of relatively slideable panels fitted to said three sides so vthat one panel may move towards and from said open side of the framework, said panels having multiple sets of apertures arranged to be brought into and out of registry; resilient means associated with said framework to constantly Aurge the movable panel towards that side of said framework which is opposite to said open side; and a hand-operable bar secured to said moveable panel in proximity to and in substantial parallelism with said open side, said 'bar terminating at one end close to a yside of said framework and 5 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Number Number 6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Hance June i9, 1903 Buehne Nov. 10, 1903 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Austria Jan. 25, 1902 Germany 1902 Great Britain Sept. 15, 1908 

